Video: Jack Lenor Larsen, Fabric Designer

Irwin Weiner ASID - Elle Decor magazine recently featured short quotations from fabric design icon Jack Lenor Larsen, and it became immediatley apparent why this creative man became so successful. For those not entrenched in the interior design industry, his signature Larsen Fabrics company is now owned by Colefax and Fowler. Here are a few of his gems of wisdom, which I find very inspiring.

Sparrows build their nests to suit. Homes should be like birdhouses: Build them out as needs arise.

A common problem is that someone will have a blue rug and a blue sofa, and the two shades don't go together. What do you do about it? I would buy five more shades of blue, in pillows and other things. Pretty soon you'll have a color symphony.

If you want a color contrast, do it in small quantities. Take risks, but ones that can be changed.

It's more important to reinforce one's identity than to worry about taste. You won't learn taste until you've made some mistakes. Be courageous. Experiment. It's much more fun.

Click on the Jack Larsen link above to see the Elle Decor article, and enjoy today's featured video, an earlier "Handmade in America" interview, to learn more about his process.

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Video Walking Tour of Paris Design District

Irwin Weiner ASID - Thanks a million to the folks at EditorTV for bringing us some of the best interior design "happenings" on video. In these two featured videos today, they've taken two of the most iconic names in textile design today - Crans Baldwin of Donghia and Ludovic Darricau of Elitis - and brought them to one another's showrooms (and also to Donghia's Rubelli showroom) to see the latest textile designs (along with the cool 3D wall murals from Elitis) and landmarks of the Paris design district. 

In this first video, we begin our walking tour and showroom field trips ...

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Wish List: Home Textiles from Bandit Queen Designs

Irwin Weiner ASID - I think it's good to have a "legend," a mystique. And one of the most intriguing comes from the textile workroom Bandit Queen Designs, Mumbai. The combined brainchild of Sudita Namjosi and Valerie Barkowski, BQD produces divine bed, bath, and table linens as well as fashion accessories. I've included a few of my favorites below; click on the company's link to see the few select retail outlets they manufacture for (lucky stores). Long live the Bandit Queen!

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Weekday DIY Project: Make a Fabric Chandelier

Irwin Weiner ASID - We've been featuring weekend do-it-yourself projects lately on Design2Share, but we wanted to throw everyone a curve ball and feature an easy project to tackle during the week. A fabric chandelier makes a great DIY wedding decoration, or a fun accessory for a deck, patio, breakfast room, or children's bedroom. The project requires some scrap fabric; and you should let the eventual occasion and/or hanging location of the chandelier dictate the color and pattern of the fabric(s) you choose. Other tools are a good pair of sewing scissors, some embroidery thread and a needle, a ruler, and an embroidery hoop. 

The project also calls for some fresh greenery, but if you're going to use the chandelier as a more permanent indoor or outdoor accessory, choose dried herbs or decorative floral leaves to wrap the embroidery hoop - or simply wrap the hoop with the same fabric you're using to hang the chandelier. You can make several chandeliers for a more dramatic decorating impact at a wedding or outdoor party. Imagine several hanging down from a pergola or wafting in the breeze from the underside of tree branches! All the steps for making this chandelier are demonstrated in the following video, and you can go to the premiere

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